Carroll County groundwater study published in scientific journal

Thursday

A University of Cincinnati study that determined that natural gas drilling had no effect on the quality of groundwater in Carroll County has been published in a scientific journal.

A University of Cincinnati study that determined that natural gas drilling had no effect on the quality of groundwater in Carroll County has been published in a scientific journal.

The study was recently published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Monitoring Assessment, more than two years after researchers first announced their findings at a meeting of the group Carroll Concerned Citizens.

The study looked at water quality in five counties - Carroll, Columbiana, Stark, Harrison and Belmont - with a focus on Carroll County, which was the center of the Utica Shale boom in eastern Ohio. Water was sampled three to four times per year from 25 water wells from 2012 to February 2015. A total of 191 samples were taken.

The researchers were trying to determine whether hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, creates dangerous levels of methane in well water.

According to Amy Townsend-Small of the University of Cincinnati, the study did not document that fracking was directly linked to water contamination. The highest observed methane concentrations were generated by subsurface coal beds, which underlie much of eastern Ohio.

"While this study is indeed a first for Ohio, this is just one of more than two dozen studies showing that fracking is not a major threat to groundwater," said Jackie Stewart, state director for Energy In Depth-Ohio, an industry-funded public relations, research, education and public outreach campaign focusing on on-shore energy resources, including natural gas drilling.

"The report's now-confirmed topline conclusion is all the more noteworthy considering it was partially funded and orchestrated by anti-fracking groups," she said. "In fact, the study received over 18 percent of its funding from the anti-fracking Deer Creek Foundation. In other words, it should come as no surprise that the hypothesis was not supported by the facts of the data, and we applaud UC for acknowledging that point as well."

Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

On Twitter: @jbakerTR

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